The Finale: My Version
by RoganGirl13
Summary: This is my own alternate ending for the finale. Hopefully, it is a lot more satisfying than the actual ending. Enjoy!


"And that, kids, is how I met your mother." Ted leaned back in his chair, waiting for a response.

"That's it?" Penny asked. Ted scoffed. "What do you mean, "that's it"?"

"C'mon, Dad, there's gotta be a catch. There is no way you sat us down to tell this story for no reason. You said we're not being punished, so what's going on? Is Mom okay?" Luke nodded in agreement.

Ted took a deep breath, trying to hold back tears. "Guys, the doctor called this morning. They did some tests on Mom and..."

"AND?" The kids replied in unison. Ted broke into a smile. "Mom's coming home. Tonight. For good," Ted managed before breaking into sobs. His children joined him in crying and quickly jumped into his arms. After a moment's embrace, Ted glanced at the clock. "Oh crap, we gotta go," he exclaimed, "Grab your coats and get in the car. Hurry!" For once, the children obeyed and were in the car ready to go in less than a minute.

A few days after returning home, Tracy felt well enough to venture out of the house. Ted called up the gang and that evening, for the first time since the wedding, their entire group was back at MacLaren's. Well, the former MacLaren's, anyway. You see, sometime in the past few years the bar had been bought out by a mysterious businessman who went by the name of Swarley. Even stranger, the name of the bar had been changed to "Puzzles". Ted didn't mind though. The only real difference was that now the bar was a more kid-friendly place that he could enjoy with the whole family. And, that night, for the first time in six years, Ted was able to do just that.

When the Mosbys arrived at the bar, the whole gang was already there waiting at their regular booth. Well, Marshall, Lily, Barney, and Robin were at the regular booth. Marvin, Daisy, Dahlia, and Ellie occupied the booth behind their parents. Luke and Penny went to join the other kids, while Ted and Tracy joined the rest of the gang.

"Feels weird being back here, doesn't it?" Marshall asked. The gang nodded. Ted put his arm around Tracy. "We've all been through a lot these past few years," Ted remarked.

"Well I don't think any of us has been through as much as you guys have," said Lily, pointing to the Mosbys. Ted and Tracy nodded.

"Yeah, these past six years have been by far the toughest I've, I mean we've, ever had to go through. But you know what? It's time to put that all behind us. Tonight is a night for celebration! Carl, a bottle of champagne and six glasses please!" The gang cheered.

"Uh Ted..." said Tracy.

"Don't worry, I asked the doctor. He said as long as you wait a few days, one glass should be just fine." Tracy smiled.

Once the champagne was poured the gang got to catching up with each others' lives. "So, Marshall, Lily, how does it feel knowing you'll be sending a kid off to college soon?" Robin asked. Lily immediately broke into sobs, and Marshall gave Robin a punishing glare. "Okay, nobody is allowed to mention the fact that Marvin is l-e-a-v-i-n-g. You KNOW it makes Lily—Why are you two wearing your wedding rings?!" Marshall exclaimed.

"We thought you'd never ask," Barney replied. "You see, when Number 31 took me to court last week with her latest attempt at gaining custody, I discovered there was a clerical error with our divorce papers. Long story short, the divorce never went through." Barney grinned as he watched his friends stare in shock. Tracy spoke first.

"So... you two are...?" Barney and Robin nodded. "Still married," replied Robin.

"But you're not going to...?" Ted asked.

"Nope," replied Barney. "We talked about it, and-"

"Well we did a bit more than talk about it," Robin interjected, winking at Barney. Barney winked back. Ellie could be heard gagging the booth behind them.

"Anyway, we talked about it and we decided that going through that process one time was hard enough. And, I'll admit, having Ellie made me realize that I really am ready to settle down and have a family. I'm ready. For real this time."

"Awwww!" Lily and Tracy gushed. Ted and Marshall smiled.

"Wait, what about Ellie?" Ted asked. "I mean, Robin, I'll admit you've gotten better with kids over the years, but are you sure you're ready to take this on full time.?"

"Yeah. I don't know. I guess it's just different with Ellie. I mean, maybe it's because she's Barney's kid, but things just feel really natural with her. Plus, I'll be traveling for work so it's not like I'll be doing the whole "Mom" thing full time. It'll be great." Barney and Robin smiled at each other.

"Oh, by the way. You guys are all invited out to Farhampton next month. We're gonna renew our vows for our seventeenth wedding anniversary," said Barney.

"We wouldn't miss it for the world," replied Ted, "And if I may, I'd like to propose a toast," Everyone raised their glasses, and in the next booth, the kids raised their soda cans. "To new beginnings."

"To new beginnings!" Everyone shouted, clinking glasses and soda cans.

"To new beginnings," Marvin whispered as he slipped his arm around Penny's shoulder. Penny glanced back to make sure her parents weren't watching, and gave Marvin a quick peck on his cheek.

After a few hours of celebrating, the gang once again parted ways. The Ericksens brought all six kids home for the night so the other couples could have some time alone. "After all," said Marshall, "You all have a lot of lost time to make up for," he said with a smile and a wink. This time, all the children gagged, making the adults laugh. So Ted and Tracy got into their car alone and drove off into the proverbial sunset. For the Mosbys, all was right in the world again.

A/N Well, that was my version of the ending, as well as a prologue of sorts for my next story, which will be Luke telling _his _kids how he met _their _mother. So make sure to stick around if you liked this one! Thanks for reading!


End file.
